Ron Paul's 'Audit The Fed' Bill Is Back, And This Time It Might Really Be Going Somewhere

After more than three decades of tilting at windmills,
Ron
Paul is finally gaining support for his beloved
Audit The Fed bill.

The bill, H.R. 459,
passed the House Oversight Committee this morning on a voice
vote, with no vocal opposition. House Republican leaders have
said that they plan on addressing the legislation on the floor
sometime next month.

The bill would eliminate some of the existing restrictions on
Federal Reserve audits, including those on transactions with
foreign banks and governments, deliberations over monetary
policy, and communications between Federal Reserve board
members.

It's the latest iteration of Paul's signature legislation, which
he has introduced several times during his tenure in Congress,
most recently as part of the Dodd-Frank financial reform package.
A similar bill, introduced by Paul's son, Sen. Rand
Paul, has been introduced in the Senate, but has
failed to garner much momentum.

But while Paul's earlier efforts to audit the Federal Reserve
system were largely dismissed as another one of his crazy ideas,
his colleagues have started to warm to the idea in the wake of
the 2008 financial meltdown. Today's vote might be further
evidence that, in the twilight of his career, the rest of the
country might be starting to come around to Ron Paul.

Here's Paul's statement on the vote:

“I am very happy that the House Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform today passed H.R. 459. The bill passed
unanimously by voice vote, with all of its strong audit
provisions intact. It is time for the Federal Reserve to face a
thorough audit of its monetary policy and lending operations. The
Fed’s purchases of dubious assets from favored Wall Street
institutions; its lending of hundreds of billions of dollars to
foreign governments and central banks; and the prospect of
further quantitative easing and European bailouts underscore
the critical need for transparency. I am deeply appreciative of
the overwhelming support this legislation has received from my
colleagues in the House, especially today from the Oversight
Committee. I look forward to seeing my Audit the Fed legislation
passed by a bipartisan majority of Congress next month."

And here's Sen. Paul's release:

“Today, I applaud the unanimous passage of Audit the Fed out
of committee and commend House leadership for promising a vote on
Audit the Fed next month,” Sen. Paul said. “It is important that
we get our economy growing again through savings and investment,
not more debt and deficit spending. But we can’t turn the economy
around until we fix the root of the problem: an unaccountable
Federal Reserve. A complete and thorough audit of the Fed will
finally allow the American people to know exactly how their money
is being spent by Washington.”

“I have introduced similar legislation in the Senate and will
continue to fight on the frontlines of this battle to get Audit
the Fed passed through Congress.”